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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: straw · lash · file · saw · mark · stem

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. file — a line of people
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. file — a document
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. mark — a trace
  10. mark — a grade
  11. stem — to come from
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. saw — the tool
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. saw — the tool
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. file — a tool
  18. stem — of a plant

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com